[D0, LA] Late Afternoon is for Tea (Open)

[Shosuro Hikimasu]

After getting a book, you needed a place to read. In Scorpion lands, everything was private. You could get a nook to read in, or a back room. You were out and so you weren't lying when you said you went out, but you also didn't have to deal with anyone.

Inside this Shika tea house however, things seemed much more open.

This didn't make Hikimasu happy, though not much did so he figured there wouldn't be any bigger than usual issues. He sat down and when approached by the staff tried not to look the young servant in the eyes to avoid trouble, but only ended up making her think he was some kind of shut in creep.

Which he was, but let's not dwell on that.

Letting out a breath when she walked away with his order, he went to reading.

[Seppun Unsei]

The poor Shosuro must've upset somebody high up because while he was trying to enjoy his book in peace, he got the exact opposite.

Unsei walked directly over to him like they were a creature driven by some unknown goal. "Scorpion-san! Hello! It's good to meet you! I'm Seppun Unsei and I have determined that it's you I want to talk to this afternoon. So, congratulations because I'm sure this will be quite a trip for the both of us." After they finished speaking, they bowed politely. As odd as it was, Unsei had no qualms against approaching anyone, even those who looked creepy or lower status.

"So, what book are you reading?"

[Shosuro Hikimasu]

Huh?

"Huh?"

Hikimasu heard the approach, but expected to be passed by. He heard the words, but had, in his lifetime, returned a wave, a bow or a kind word to someone who wasn't interacting with him so many times he now simply ignored people until they really got in his face and made it apparent they were talking to him.

Which was happening now.

It didn't mean he wasn't surprised. Fortunately, eyes like a dead fish leave no tells of being flustered.

He closed the book and bowed from the shoulders, as this person was already sitting before him.

"Shosuro Hikimasu, I am only a soldier from Scorpion lands. The book, Seppun-sama, is called That Room Will Go On Without Them", he said. "I haven't come very far, but it seems to be about a group of artists who converted an old storehouse in their lord's castle into a studio for their work."

And how have I met two Seppun in one day? Is this one the Emperor's personal fortune teller? The other was a governor...

[Seppun Unsei]

"Why would you read that? It sounds absolutely boring. Where's the action, the fun, the intrigue? Painting in an old storeroom is plain." They said simply before taking a seat across from the Shosuro.

They set their elbows on the table and then wove their slender fingers together in order to prop their hat-wearing head up. Once done with that, they began staring into Hikimasu's eyes with no small amount of interest. Unsei showed no signs of being disturbed by how utterly emotionless and dead they looked.

"So, I'll admit, because I don't like keeping secrets, that your eyes are perhaps some of the most stunning eyes I've ever seen in my life. They're just so... so flat! So unmoving! Now, I'm not one with any artists touch or care for beauty, but I must say that they are something spectacular. Just in case you haven't gotten many compliments on them recently. Which I'm sure you have, because I have impeccable taste."

Unsei didn't have impeccable tastes, but they thought they did and that was all that mattered to the Seppun.

[Shosuro Hikimasu]

"Is that right?" a slight nervous laugh escaped the mask.

Seppun-sama's taste is dead fish, that's not taste!

"I get a lot of comments on my eyes, Seppun-sama. Thank you for sharing that with me."

And everyone else in the tea house.

"I have to say yours are rather large and pretty as well."

He said it steadily, but it was one of the hardest things he'd done, and pulled it off by not thinking too hard for once. Inner Hikimasu was breathing a sigh of relief.

[Seppun Unsei]

"No, no. I didn't say comments. I said compliments. Compliments on your gorgeous eyes." Then they looked over to a nearby server and called out for some tea. Then back to Hikimasu.

"So, how have you been lately? You say that you're just a soldier, but even soldiers get up to some things."

They smiled widely, not realizing that they were probably making the Scorpion uncomfortable.

"And thank you! Everyone in my family says I inherited my grandfather's eyes, but he was dead long before I was born so I've got no clue if it's true or not, but I do love the honey-color that they have. Like most eyes though, they do switch colors occasionally, like when out in the sun."

[Shosuro Hikimasu]

What was this, really? A scorpion is naturally suspicious of everyone, clearly. Cynicism, doubt, ulterior motives...these are what he is used to dealing with. Was it always the case, though?

And what was lately? They didn't know each other previously...

He swallowed, then sipped his tea before it got cold.

"I've just been reading this book." He, like it, tended to be unexciting.

[Seppun Unsei]

Unsei seemed utterly harmless. The smile and expression on their face looked sincere and they had been nothing but kind and welcoming, if very odd.

That smile was still there as Hikimasu talked about the book.

"That's fair! Didn't really mean to insult it earlier, but I don't think it's for me personally. But! So far, what's been your favorite part?"

It was then that they finally removed their hat, setting it down beside them at the table. Of course, it revealed a bit of a tussled mess of stray strands as the friction in the hat had tugged them out of the otherwise neat ponytail that had curled on the floor behind the Seppun.

[Shosuro Hikimasu]

I wonder if they trip on that much hair...how did they grow it, was their father bald and forcing them to overcompensate for them?

It was pretty amazing, sweeping the floor with hair was something else, and this Seppun wasn't exactly tiny either, just...thin?

"Uh..well...Kayo is the star painter of their group, and was working alone when Kota's sensei sent him to work with her. When they meet they instantly start fighting about technique and historical uses of paints and it's very clearly all a euphemism about how men and women view each other before they really get acquainted", he said fairly thoughtfully. "The language used is pretty good, and the author uses a lot of very suitable, if not kind of difficult kanji to express it."

[Seppun Unsei]

They tilted their head some. "Oh? How do they view each other before getting acquainted then? Or rather, how does the writer see it?"

Now that their tea had arrived, they shifted some. With one hand, they kept their head propped up and still watching the Shosuro pleasantly while the other hand would bring their cup up to their lips for an occasional slip.

"Has the author any other books that you enjoy? Or any other books at all, I suppose."